User blog:Carrieunderwoodfanforlife/Carrie Underwood Named Among Billboard's 200 Greatest Women of All Time
Following the reveal of Selena Gomez as this year's Billboard Woman of the Year, the world's largest chart and music publication has announced its compilation of the "200 Greatest Women Artists of All Time." The chart compiles female musicians in order of overall number one singles, album sales, radio airplay, social media following, industry achievements, and general public awareness. Carrie Underwood landed high on that list, coming in at No. 12, the highest ranking among women in country music, with Shania Twain following closely at No. 15. Former country superstar-turned-pop icon Taylor Swift lands at No. 2, with Barbara Streisand taking the top spot at No. 1. How did Carrie Underwood take her place among the top 20 greatest female artists of all time? One could say it all began in early 2005, with her victory on American Idol's fourth season, which allowed her debut single "Inside Your Heaven" to open at #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 Songs chart. Or perhaps it was the instant success of both her debut country single, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" and her first album, Some Hearts, which eventually became the best-selling female country debut record thus far. Underwood's singles were winning awards and reaching No. 1 in the country universe early on, particulary her fiesty hit "Before He Cheats", which became a small part of American pop culture in 2006. Having already won multiple Grammy awards and capable of headlining her own tour by the end of 2007, Underwood released her sophomore album Carnival Ride, which only added to her list of number one singles and established the very young woman as a future great in country music, following the path carved by Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, and Shania Twain. She was more than on par with her contemporaries, such as Taylor Swift and Miranda Lambert, consistently garnering nominations at award shows and delivering top-knotch live performances for huge crowds. She even paired up with an icon, Randy Travis, to take on his number one hit, "I Told You So", a duet that ran up the charts. 2008 came and went, and Carrie seemed only to grow in popularity, now not only a mainstay among the country A-listers, but now making major appearances at events geared toward pop and multiple genre fans, holding her own with some of the biggest names in music. 2009 marked the release of her third album, Play On, and her second time co-hosting the Country Music Association awards, a high-profile gig that has continued for a decade now. Her professional and personal life continued to flourish in 2010, as she took more of an active role in co-writing songs, choosing endorsement deals, and participating in television projects like How I Met Your Mother, or Soul Surfer, for example. Creatively, she took more risks with future albums, particularly 2012's Blown Away and 2015's Storyteller, although both paid off commercially, each selling over 1 million copies and earning multiple number one hits. All of these brand decisions and successes contributed to sealing Underwood's status as "country music's reigning queen." Despite the likelihood that she would have been successful in almost any genre of music, she chose country, and that choice was the best one she could have made. Underwood has defined what success is for women in the Nashville industry, and will more than likely continue to lead the way for another decade. Because of her unprecedented rise to international fame through reality television, she has completely redefined the "traditional" path most country artists must take in order to be successful in America. In terms of Billboard's criteria, she is the female act with the most number one hits on the Country Airplay chart, and second-most top ten hits on the Hot Country Songs. None of Underwood's singles have charted lower than the No. 2 spot, including this year's duet with Keith Urban, called "The Fighter." Now, as 2018 draws near, Carrie will begin a new journey with a new home at Capitol Nashville, following her departure from Arista records, which shaped her commercial image for nearly twelve years. Despite that change, Underwood's strong fanbase will no doubt follow her, and she will continue being one of music's greatest women of all time. Category:Blog posts